LETTERS

— How dry county was

Arkansas dry-county residents, treasure your dry county. In the last several years, six counties in Arkansas went wet.

In November of 2010, Boone County residents were assured that alcohol sales were what the county needed. From what I understand, law enforcement opposed alcohol in Boone County. While law enforcement reports no real jump in crime since November 2010, we had a reportedly alcohol related crime where a man was shot and killed while intoxicated; there is also an increase in public intoxication.

Recently, I spoke to the man who was the driving force behind Boone County going wet. I pointed out that if he did not enjoy living in a dry county, he could have moved; he then informed me that I could move also if I did not enjoy living in a wet county. My question is, Where would I be today if I had moved to Benton, Madison or Sharp County? In a wet county. How many times must a person move to live in a dry county?

When I moved to dry Boone County, I appreciated it being dry. We can make it change back to dry if we work together. Margaret Mead said: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

MARVIN SMITH

Harrison

Not Christmas spirit

Little Rock has taken Christmas out of its parade, so we have taken Little Rock out of our list of Christmas shopping destinations.

JOE CALVERT

Forrest City

Useful bit of amnesia

When Colin Powell sat before the cameras and misled to the whole world about Iraq and Saddam’s weapons of mass destruction, where were Sens. John McCain, Lindsey Graham and Kelly Ayotte?

That, coupled with the proven misinformation peddled by then-President George W. Bush, resulted in 10 years of war and countless deaths of both Americans and Iraqis.

Powell’s defense of those statements was that it was the best intelligence he possessed at that time.

Now this Republican-biased paper and the above-referenced, camera hogging, political hatchet men choose to very conveniently forget the bill of goods sold to us to get us into a war whereby a lot of warmongers got filthy rich and a lot of conned patriots got themselves killed.

When you read this letter, please bear in mind that the paper reserves the right to edit. If it doesn’t sound like what you expect me to say, it probably isn’t what I said when I wrote it.

KARL HANSEN

Hensley

No other place to be

The policy box on this page states: “Clarity, brevity and originality are particularly valued in letters to the editor.” As a regular reader and occasional contributor, I would say that Voices is a free-for-all where any point of view may find a voice, no matter how bizarre it may be. Even grammatical errors are sometimes published as submitted.

Though there are exceptions, thinking in absolutes is the logo of this section of the paper, black and white, absolutely right or absolutely wrong, much of it with a religious or anti-religious bias.

As aggravating as all this may seem, my opinion is right on. There is no other place in a newspaper for certain voices to make themselves heard. Even when they should be embarrassed by what they express and how they say it.

GLENROY EMMONS

Hot Springs Village

Respond with reason

Whatever rights the Second Amendment may have been intended to protect in the muzzle-loading 18th Century, it surely does not encompass the right to carry and fire automatic or semiautomatic weapons that can mow down 20 schoolkids in a matter of minutes. The National Rifle Association notwithstanding, it ought to be possible in this purportedly civilized nation to prohibit such killer weapons without threatening in the least the constitutional rights of peaceable gun owners.

As worrisome in some ways as these occasional murderous sprees is the lock down society that exaggerated fears of myriad dangers have wrought in America. Do all public buildings, and private offices as well, need to be turned into semi-inaccessible fortresses?

Have we become prisoners of phantom menaces much more widespread than any real ones?

We do need to take out of circulation weapons designed principally for the efficient killing of fellow human beings. But we also need to resist the urge to lock ourselves away from the ordinary risks and hazards of everyday life.

JACK SCHNEDLER

Little Rock

Being greedy? Nooo

According to Barack Obama, if taxes are raised on the top 2 percent, those rich folks will be paying their “fair share.” At the same time he says he’s going to keep the rates lower on the rest. A recent poll suggests that 65 percent of those polled favored raising taxes on the top earners.

If 47 percent of the people aren’t paying income taxes now, why wouldn’t they want the top 2 percent to be paying more? They are probably fine with this idea. They may see this as a way of getting more money.

Nah-that would be a selfish motive.

But wait. Say we have 100 people: Of the 65 people who are in favor of the top 2 percent paying more taxes, we’ve already accounted for 47. Out of the 53 who do pay income taxes who are for this idea, that only leaves 18; they make up only 34 percent of those 53 remaining. And how many of that 34 percent are for taxing that top 2 percent only if they get their income taxes lowered? Are these folks being greedy?

Now let’s talk about that lowering of taxes. Ever since they were passed, some people have claimed that the Bush (actually, they are Obama’s now) tax cuts all went to those “rich” people, and didn’t help the middle or lower class at all.

If that were true, how would the middle and lower classes be hurt if tax rates went back to those of the Bill Clinton era?

ALLEN VEASMAN

Dover

Editorial, Pages 15 on 12/18/2012

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